CIRCUIT FOR DAMPING GAS DISCHARGE LAMPS WITHOUT AFFECTING STRIPING

摘要

A dimming circuit provides power from an ac source to a compact fluorescent lamp. The circuit generally includes a resonant circuit driven by a high-frequency switching inverter. The resonant circuit is essentially an ac current source and provides sinusoidal current to the lamp, which loads the resonant circuit in parallel. A small amount of dc current is simutaneously provided to the lamp. The resultant asymmetric current waveform flowing through the lamp substantially eliminates striation over a dimming range from about 100% to 1% of full light output.